The Rise of Buffalo Bill

American History Hit

History Hit

America, History

4.5 • 1.3K Ratings

🗓️ 11 May 2023

⏱️ 21 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

He was the most famous man in the world at the turn of the 20th century, bringing the American frontier to the rest of the United States, the United Kingdom and Continental Europe. But who was Buffalo Bill?

In this episode, recorded at the Buffalo Bill Museum and Grave in Golden, Colorado, Don is joined by Steve Friesen to find out about the rise of America’s first celebrity.

From boy scout to breadwinning buffalo hunter, how did William Cody become a showman and an iconic household name?

Produced by Sophie Gee. Mixed by Siobhan Dale. Senior Producer: Charlotte Long.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Imagine if the most exciting place on earth came right to your doorstep.
0:10.0	That's just what happened over a century ago, from San Francisco to New York, London to Paris.
0:17.0	A huge Wild West show fronted by an all-action hero who shaped an iconic enduring image of America.
0:26.3	Buffalo Bill was America's first celebrity and the most famous man in the world at the turn of the 20th century.
0:46.0	And he's buried right here on this spot just outside of Denver, Colorado.
0:51.0	And he chose this spot because it was surrounded by that which he loved so much.
0:55.4	A vast beauty of the America West.
0:58.2	He was a former scout, soldier, buffalo hunter.
1:06.0	But what he's best known for, of course, was his showmanship. I'm sitting here in Golden, Colorado at the Buffalo Bill Museum and Grave with a man
1:27.5	named Steve Friesen.
1:28.5	Hey Steve, thanks for talking to me about the life of Buffalo Bill.
1:31.8	Well, thanks for talking with me about it, too.
1:34.0	It's a good subject.
1:35.0	Yes, it is.
1:36.0	So tell me about the early days,
1:38.0	who was William Cody?
1:39.0	That was his name, right, before he became Buffalo Bill?
1:42.0	Well, Will Cody actually was born in Iowa,
1:46.0	and at age 8, his family moved to Leavenworth, Kansas.
1:49.0	This is in 1854, just as they open up the territory of Kansas to settlement.
1:54.4	So his family was among the first to settle in Kansas.
1:58.4	But the big issue at the time was the issue of slavery and the family got sucked into the vortex of if you
	...

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